A World Built of Actors: The Ironic Design Language of Game Engines

Anyone who plays games is generally aware that objects and structures in game worlds are often not what they seem to be. We confidently stride towards our well-earned reward, throw back the lid of the treasure chest only to find ourselves attacked by the very chest we sought to open.1 Freshly baked pizza toppings might be used to boost our health, charisma or confidence.2 Slapping and spraying paint onto walls and floors can turn hard surfaces into colourful pools where we can swim or hide.3 Even in games that provide sweeping cinematic narratives worthy of Hollywood, we might find the main character dying hundreds of times, yet the story moves forward, blissfully unaffected.4 This free-floating detachment between objects and their meaning is not some deficit or problem with games.